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Zionism had absolutely nothing to do with Arab treatment of Jews. Herzl's The Jewish State makes no mention of the Arabs. Jews fared far better under Islam than they did under Christianity.


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Andy, you keep statiing this, but the fact is that the Jews fared like CRAP under the Arabs. That the Jews fared even worse under the Europeans is not a mitigating factor in the least. Whether or not Zionism was a response to European AND Arab oppression--which both certainly existed--is not the only point here. Even if you are right that Zionism was a response only to European oppression of the Jews, it DESERVED to be a response to Arab oppression of the Jews as well. Moreover Arab oppression of the Jews (and of the Christians) goes on to this day, and many Arab states have many laws against religious freedom, and against non-Muslims having equal rights in court.

Regarding Zionism, I personally think Arab oppression of the Jews was at least a small contributing factor, although surely lesser, than European oppression of the Jews. At least, it was a peripheral factor in the psychological sense. But even if it was a total non-factor, as you seem to be asserting, it SHOULD have been a factor. And so it should be to this day and on into the future, until the Arab states reform their BIGOTED and BACKWARDS horribly oppressive laws and attitudes.